The Fox's Tale
by OffCenterFold
Summary: Megumi had a life, once...  And then she began to learn more than she ever cared to know about the darker side of the medical field.
1. Chapter 1

Part I - The Beginning of the End

Fubuki Taro smiled at his pupil. His hair fell into his eyes as he looked up at the slight figure next to him, putting the finish touches on a bandage with careful hands as he watched. It was a flawless performance, and the student looked up at last, pushing back long black hair with the movement.

She was so young, so beautiful, and so sad, even after all this time. He wished she could be happy again.

The doctor smiled at his student. "I don't think I could have done better myself. It is good that you decided to stay on and learn to be a doctor. There is always much to learn, and I am glad you are so willing. You have a gift for healing, and I am honored that you allow me to be the one to give you the knowledge to use your gift."

The seventeen year old blushed furiously. It was so embarrassing when he talked that way! Even if it was flattering and he was serious, she knew she had far to go before she could call herself a doctor. She had studied for years even before coming under his tutelage, but she knew Fubukisensei would soon be allowing her to start practicing medicine and assisting him with minor surgeries. She wanted to know everything in detail. It was thrilling, but she knew how important it was to keep in practice - and impartial.

She also knew he was hiding something from her, but perhaps she would learn when he was ready to teach her. Besides, she had a secret of her own. Not that her relationship with Mujihi Nobuo was much of a secret, but she had told no one of his desire to marry her. They hadn't discussed it seriously yet, but the topic had come up more than once lately. She was not too young to plan to be married.

Takani Megumi smiled to herself and rose with her teacher as he nodded to their patient and dismissed the man with a smile and a few words.

"Megumichan, I've got to go out tonight. Will you be all right for dinner?"

"Hai. Nobuo wanted to know if I would be free. May I go find him now?"

"Of course." The young doctor nodded at his student. It seemed things were getting more serious with her and the Mujihi boy. That made him glad - perhaps they would wed soon, and he would be spared from having to introduce Megumi into the life of a servant, an opium maker for one of the cruelest men Fubuki had ever known. He had plans someday to break free of that particular contract... But his intention was to keep the profits for himself.

Of course, Mujihi Nobuo was rather an odd choice for the sensible yet tender woman Megumi was growing to become, Fubukisensei mused to himself as his student ran off. She clung so desperately to her lost childhood inside that it seemed strange for her to fall for such a distant man as Mujihi. Hard-hearted, indeed. The boy's entire family was well known for being tightfisted and insensitive. Many of them had died in "unfortunate accidents" that never seemed to surprise anyone over the years.

Perhaps young Nobuo was different. He truly did seem entranced by the young medical student. Perhaps he was the white sheep in a family that tended to darker fleece.

Though he doubted it, Taro fervently hoped so for her sake. It had been hard enough for his student to lose her family - she harbored hopes that some of them survived, he knew, but the chances of that were rather poor. He never mentioned that, for it was a foolish teacher who brought pain to his students.

Especially when the pupil in question had so much to bear.

Taro sighed as he swept the floors. Normally he would leave such tasks to Megumi, but tomorrow was her birthday. Let her enjoy her youth while she had it. At seventeen, she would begin taking a more active part in the practice - though, he prayed, not the darker side. The riskier part of her education - making medicine and performing more delicate surgeries - would prove troublesome enough. He would have to work to conceal the opium from her, though it would be close to impossible if she even got curious; he suspected she already was.

And he was so close to the new formula. With luck, he could have it completed by spring if he hurried.

But he must keep Megumi away from Takeda Kanryuu. Taro knew that he was no angel, but that man was truly evil, and Taro feared for Megumi's life.

The doctor sighed as he turned the sign on the clinic's door and went to the back room. He had put off allowing her into the medicine room as long as he could so as to avoid the risk of getting her involved.

Meanwhile, Megumi had visited Yamahasan's horse stall, where Nobuo was working for the experience, and Yamahasan had given Nobuo the evening free after telling Megumi that he dearly loved a fleet steed and someday, he and his family would be owners of a great dynasty of fast horses and sleek vessels for land and sea alike.

Megumi smiled and listened with mild interest, though after the twelfth time, the lecture had begun to lose some of its luster. She didn't doubt his determination; it was merely a matter of being in the right place at the right time, and she did hope that it would happen even as she secretly hoped that a customer would come and distract Yamahasan from his rant.

She and Nobuo headed down the road in near silence. She glanced at him in the twilight, thinking once again how good-looking he was. It never failed to amaze her that he'd been attracted to her.

Thick hair as dark as her own fell to the middle of his back in a loose ponytail, waving softly since he usually left it in a braid while working. Thin eyebrows, as straight as his spine, danced expressively over impossibly large green eyes which always seemed full of emotion and thought. Full, sensuous lips that curved easily into a slow smile completed the picture drawn with concise, delicate lines. He would have had a very feminine face except for the too strong chin, the jaw too wide and the light stubble of a long day's work.

Long and lean, he walked with a catlike grace alongside her. His way of moving, among other traits, had earned him the nickname Hyou. Panther. As a joke, he tended to wear black and purr. Broad shoulders tapered to a swimmer's waist, slim hips and lean, firm legs that ate up the ground with every step. He moved like a fighter, spoke like a poet, and carried himself like a faintly modest god.

Megumi smiled at the towering figure next to her as he slid a protective arm around her shoulders.

"My darling, tonight should be special for us both. Tomorrow you turn seventeen. No, hush, my blessing, for I know well you don't anticipate this, but remember, I will always be old next to you. It is merely your own youth, your beauty, your soul itself that brings me such joy and keeps me so young at heart."

"Oh, Nobuo, you're only twenty-three. Not so much older than I."

"Perhaps, Megumi. And perhaps not - I cannot bear to argue such petty points. Come," he said, leading her on towards the bridge. "Come this way and let us watch the sun set on such a glorious day."

They sat in silence, admiring the daily miracle that was never twice the same, watching the world and one another in the shifting gold and pinks and lavenders of twilight.

When at last the final glory of sunset was spent, Nobuo lifted his chin from Megumi's head and raised her own from his shoulder.

"It's only a few hours' walk to Tokyo. Do you think your doctor will allow you to travel with me on the morrow?"

"I'm afraid not, Nobuo. As it is, he's got to go there himself and he'll be leaving tonight and coming back tomorrow afternoon. He goes there every two weeks, you know. I think he meets someone there."

"Perhaps Fubukisensei is enamored of a lady there?"

"Nobuo, you're such a dreamer! I suspect it's a business deal. Maybe he's a businessman as well as a doctor, not that you'd know it so see how he lives." Megumi smiled fondly; her teacher got by but tended to forget about managing his own finances. "Either way, I have to watch the clinic while he's away. I wish I could go with you."

"Megumi, I've been thinking. Tomorrow is your birthday. I suppose I should mention this to you before I speak to Fubukisensei, but I was hoping you would not object. I was hoping you would say yes to me for an excursion tomorrow." He took a deep breath. Megumi noticed he looked troubled.

"What is it, Nobuo? What's wrong?

He closed his eyes and took another deep breath, only now he seemed to be gathering courage. "Megumi. Takani Megumi. I was hoping you would do me the great honor of becoming my wife."

"N... Nobuo."

"Will you become, for me, Mujihi Megumi? Say you will!" All his poetry and poise, haughty airs and high-flown words fled him at that moment. He begged with his eyes, baring his soul to her as she stared back at him in surprise.

"Nobuo, I have to think about this. I must finish my medical schooling, and I can't ask you to wait for me. You're a very special person in my life and I don't want to hurt either of us by deciding rashly. But, Nobuo?"

"Yes, Megumi?"

"Daisuki yo."

"I know. It's only that... My family can easily afford to make do. You have no need to work for a living."

"Nobuo, I want to do this. I love helping people, just like my father did. The dream is all I have left of him. Please try to understand how much this means to me!"

"Your father is dead! Can't you realize that? And no wife of mine will ever work for a living!"

Megumi looked at him, her gaze even, and when she spoke her tone was cold, calm and low. "And if she should choose to work?"

"N-" Nobuo paused and looked back at her. Suddenly he saw she had meant every word of it. This was it. Either he must give in to her demands, or give up.

"My darling, I love you. But I cannot allow you to work. You know my father will not approve."

"This is not some foolish child's whim. I want to do this, to be a doctor, with all my heart."

Nobuo rose. "I must think on that. It goes against everything I know. But if it means that much to you, I will talk to them. Come, let me walk you home." The romantic evening was obviously at an end. He offered his hand and she placed hers on his arm as she rose, clearly as a token gesture. He did not miss the symbolism. She would accept him, accept his aid, but she would never allow herself to depend on him as long as she could stand on her own.

"I've heard interesting rumors lately," Nobuo said, turning the topic to safer ground.

"Oh?" Megumi looked at her escort. His rumors were usually reliable and interesting - his father worked in a government office and often leaked tidbits to his sons.

"Among other things, they say the Hitokiri Battousai has been spotted headed in this direction. He's many days away, possibly weeks by the nearest rumors, and not near enough to make anyone worry, but there are those who are still nervous."

"Didn't he vanish after the revolution? I thought he was dead."

"So they say, although I've heard he's become a rurouni, and has offered assistance to those in need. I've heard he never stays in one place for more than a week, that he bears a heavy burden of guilt and is searching to atone for it. They also say he carries a sakaba blade now."

"He can't be very dangerous, then. If he's helping people that way, and carrying a reverse bladed sword. I think it's very noble and romantic."

Nobuo laughed, a little harshly. "All I know is, never piss off a man with red hair and a cross shaped scar on his cheek. "

"I'll keep that in mind," Megumi said dryly. "Have you heard anything else of late?"

"It seems opium is on the rise in Tokyo. Also, the daughter of some small town politician nearby is to be married off to her father's ally in China. He seems to have very good connections."

"I would say so. I'd like to go there someday," Megumi sighed wistfully. "I'd like to travel to so many places! But I suppose for tonight, I'll have to travel to my own apartment. Hmm?"

As they came to the door in question, Megumi saw a note on the table. "Oh, it's Fubukisensei's handwriting. He's already left, and will be back as early as possible tomorrow afternoon," she told Nobuo as she read it.

"Megumi. My heart. If you would rather not spend the night alone..."

"I'll be fine, Nobuo. Please give my best to your family."

The tall man nodded. "Of course. Happy birthday, my heart." Nobuo smiled down at the beautiful young medical student and kissed her forehead. He kissed her cheeks and met her lips then with his own, pulling her against him. He ran one hand through her hair as he held her, kissing her deeply until at last she pulled away.

"Nobuo, I really must rest."

He could not entirely conceal the flash of disappointment. "Of course, my darling. I do apologize for pushing past the limits of my reason. Sleep well, my angel and I will see thee on the morrow. And once more, happiest of natal days, my blessing." Nobuo bowed deeply and slipped out into the night.

"What a character he is," Megumi smiled to herself as she closed the door behind him. "Ah, well. I suppose I might truly get some rest tonight. The world won't stop just because I'm turning seventeen."

Megumi crawled into her bed.

"Fubukisensei. Please stay away from that Kanryuu. Please come back safely." It was almost a mantra, perhaps even a prayer, that she spoke every time he went away. Her teacher had tried to conceal it, but she knew why he went into Tokyo so often. All she needed to know was exactly why - or more precisely, what the drugs were that were such a big secret.

The thought did not grant her pleasant dreams. Even as she lay down, she knew Fubukisensei would be arriving at the place near Tokyo - it would surely not be in the city itself - where he met with the man who had him in thrall. She prayed that she'd not been seen the night two weeks before when she'd sneaked out after her teacher. He hadn't known; if he had, he would have refused to teach her. That was certain. He would have sent her away for her own safety. She knew his own life was at risk every time he made the trip.

She awoke early the next morning to a cold, clear day. It was beautiful outside and Megumi allowed herself the luxury of waking up slowly. She was surprised she'd slept so well, after all that had transpired the night before.

"Nobuo, you make me crazy." Megumi smiled as her voice fell upon absent ears. "I'm sure we can work this out."

She pushed the cover away and rose from her futon, ignoring the slightly chill air. It was easy to let her mind wander over the previous night as she performed her morning ablutions. It was not so easy to ignore the cold finger of worry over her sensei and over Nobuo from tracing her spine. There was too much at stake at the clinic for her to fret so much. Soon, patients would be arriving, and birthday or not she must help those who needed her.

She stepped outside, walking next door to the small clinic, only to find Kamome Michiko waiting for her. Michiko was a good friend, for all Megumi kept mostly to herself; often the two women would spend time together when they had some to spare. Michiko was as good a source of information as Nobuo, though when men shared such news it was called just that: news. When women spoke of the same subjects, it was gossip. However, from the look in Michiko's face as she awaited her medically inclined friend, the latest was not to be pleasant.

"Oh, Megumi, I'm so glad you're here! You couldn't know, - you don't, do you? This is all so awful!" Michiko was a wreck, her short black hair tied back roughly, her dark eyes wide with distress. Her soft, round features were twisted with worry as she wrung work roughened hands.

"What's wrong, Michiko?"

"You haven't heard, then! Oh, Megumi, it's so horrible! Nobuo's parents have -" She stopped herself. "Oh, Megumi, they've... they..."

Megumi took the frantic girl by the shoulders. "What did they do, Michiko? You've got to calm down."

"I... This morning. They came with him to my parents. He... They asked... They said they wanted to - that he should... Oh Megumi!" She was crying.

Megumi opened the clinic and led the hysterical young woman inside. "Come in. I'll make you some tea. You need to take a deep breath and calm down before you tell me what's going on." Her doctor's instincts overrode those that told her just how bad the news would be, quelling her emotions by grabbing hold of them, and throttling them, leaving them unconscious to be dealt with more appropriately later. For now, she was calm and rational. "They want to arrange a marriage for one of you and Nobuo, don't they."

"I think so, Megumi. They do, but I could never! You love him and he loves you and you two were going to be married! This is horrible!"

"I didn't know he and I were going to be married." At the first signs of stirring, her emotions were knocked out by the need for stability. The pain would - no, MUST wait.

"Ev... Everyone thought so."

"I'll tell you the truth. He asked last night. I told him I would not give up being a doctor. He doesn't like the idea of a wife working outside of his home. Apparently, his parents feel the same way. And apparently, he felt that was more important than I am to him, so I suppose I shall be seeing no more of Mujihi Nobuo." Megumi was all ice.

Michiko blinked. "Megumi. You... Will you be okay?"

"I will be. But I'll sooner love the Hitokiri Battousai than even think about Mujihi Nobuo again!" Megumi's eyes flashed but her lip quivered slightly. She would not let herself feel the pain in its fullness until tonight, when she could cry alone in the safety of her room, but the anger was not so easily controlled.

"I won't marry him, Megumi! No matter what!" Michiko was defiant.

"If not you, then certainly your sister. Kimiko would be the perfect wife for an... assertive man like him."

"Oh, Megumi, this is so awful!" Michiko rose and helped her friend prepare the clinic for the morning's influx of patients. "I can't believe he'd pull such a dirty trick! Doesn't he even care what you feel?"

"You've got to remember, Michiko, the reason he doesn't want to marry me is because I insist on my independence. It's not exactly a ladylike thing to do in his book, so perhaps I am also unlike a lady in that I do not have feelings, or they are of no consequence if I do."

Michiko thought that over for a moment. "I suppose you're right, but that is no excuse for him to pull such a trick! You mustn't let him get away with hurting you like this, Megumi! There's got to be something we can do!"

"Right now, we can treat people who need a doctor." Megumi sighed. "Michiko, I appreciate your support but I can't let myself worry about him now. You're welcome to stay and help out if you like, but I will not let him get to me now. There's work to be done."

"I do admire your strength, Megumi." Michiko rose to stoke the fire and added water to the teapot as Megumi laid out fresh bandages and the standard herbal remedies for the most common complaints. "Did you really mean that, about the Battousai? I've heard he's been seen lately. I've also heard that he doesn't kill anymore but that's so hard to believe! I can't help but picture him as this seven foot tall, slavering, bloodthirsty beast all covered in hair and fangs!" She giggled a little nervously. "Once a killer, always a killer, right?"

"I don't know, Michiko. I'll never meet him anyway, and even if I did, why should I love him, if he's such a brute as you say. He's more of a legend than a person, anyway. And maybe that seems romantic to you, but not to me. I'm not so easily given to flights of fancy. Besides, if he's anything like that jerk Nobuo, I'll want nothing to do with him!" Megumi sat down to await her first patient of the day. Michiko sat with her, absorbing what her friend had said.

"If you'd like, I'll stay 'til lunchtime." Michiko was surprised at her friend's grateful smile. "I know this is an awful way to start your birthday, but if it helps you feel any better, I have a surprise for you later."

"A surprise? What is it? Oh, please tell me!" Megumi felt young again, like a ten year old expecting a surprise with nothing else to worry about. No need to force the fears that her life was crashing down around her. It was, after all, her birthday. She could listen to the hateful little voice of fear later.


	2. Chapter 2

Part II - On War's Path

Megumi woke to Fubukisensei's knock. Drawing her robe around her, she was surprised to see him so early. He had spent the day before in Tokyo and not come back by the time she'd gone to sleep. She'd been worried, but not overly so; her training was nearly complete and she knew herself competent. More importantly, so did those she treated.

"What is it, sensei?"

"Megumi. I need to show you something as soon as possible." He looked as though he hadn't slept. He had the haunted look of a man running in fear for his life. She noticed her teacher was nervous, agitated like she had never seen him before, a leaf in a snowstorm. She couldn't know that he'd been planning to rebel against Kanryuu.

"Of course, sensei." No use being silly, was there. "As soon as I am dressed, I will be at the clinic."

"Hm? Oh, yes, of course. Dressed. Yes, well. Come to the back room when you're ready." He scurried back to the clinic.

That clinched it. "How very odd," Megumi mused. She had never seen him so distracted, and now she was summoned to the back room. "Does he mean the medicine room or his private study?" She pondered what could have him so frantic as she dressed quickly and went next door.

Apparently, he did mean his private study. Megumi had the feeling she was about to find out a few things she didn't want to know, a few things she possibly shouldn't know, and many things she would need to know. And not all of them would have to do with the medical profession itself.

"Sensei, I am ready to learn what you will teach me this day and every day." She bowed as she spoke. It was their usual ritual greeting, to which he would usually reply with a smile and the daunting comment, "Then you have much to learn this day and every day forth, for each news breath brings a new lesson." Today, he barely nodded as he hunched miserably over a pile of notes.

After a long moment, he looked up. "Megumi, tell me what you think this formula will make." He handed her a paper from the side of the desk, with a recipe written upon it.

"Hm? She looked at it for a moment. "I don't know."

He handed her the paper he'd been poring over. "That's fine. And this?"

She studied it intently for a moment longer than she had the first. "This… It looks like it would be the same thing, only twice as potent with cheaper ingredients and it would be faster to make." She looked up at her teacher with a carefully neutral expression. "But why, Sensei?"

""This is the formula I've been developing for the medicine I make for Takeda Kanryuu. I want you to learn this - no, both of these and then destroy them. And then you will help me make some the old way, and some the new way, and then we are going to go to Tokyo. And I want you to swear to me you will do as I ask.

"And most importantly, never, ever tell anyone you know anything about this. Ever. And NEVER reveal the formulae."

Megumi stared at him, completely at a loss. "Fubukisensei."

He looked at her and his features softened. "It is very much to ask, I am aware. And you are young to bear such a heavy burden. To this day, I regret very much that you and Mujihisan did not -"

"That was two years ago, Sensei." Megumi never cut off her instructor save for the most painful subjects. "And I would ask you now not to mention it. That is the past."

He nodded. "Very well. Forgive me. Yet I do regret it. This would not be necessary; I would know you were safe and provided for, better off than you are now. I do not need to tell you exactly what is at stake."

Megumi shook her head.

"I shall go and see patients today until you know those two formulae. Please, Takanisensei, promise me that you will say nothing of this to anyone, not here and not in Tokyo! Now, promise!"

"You called me..."

"Only what you are. You are Takani Megumisensei now, in the eyes of the world." She'd never quite noticed when he'd stopped calling her "Megumichan", but the little thrill of warmth that the greater honorific brought was painfully absent at that moment.

"Yes, Fubukisensei." How could she argue when he phrased it so?

"Taro."

"Ta - Taro. Tarosensei, I will do as you ask. But -"

He paused at the door. "Yes?"

"But what if something happens to you?"

"You must survive. That is paramount even to this." He turned to the main clinic as she bent her head to the recipes.

The next two weeks were busy. Fortunately, it seemed to be a slow season for serious illness and injury, so the interruptions were few and far between. She still didn't know what the formulas were for, as her teacher refused to tell her nothing more than "very potent medicine".

It also helped that one of Fubukisensei's peers, who had studied with him, had come to the town and on his former colleague's advice set up his own practice. Fubuki Taro explained to the other that he would soon be leaving town, perhaps indefinitely, and that he was unsure if Megumi, a very skilled student, would want to continue practicing medicine locally upon her return. He explained it off as such womanly problems as failed romance and lost family. Of course, he made the other promise to say nothing of this "to protect her sensibilities." Yet if she wanted to remain local, Fubuki was told she would be welcome to work at the new clinic.

Perhaps the other knew Fubuki was not telling the whole story, but the point was moot. The important thing was that the town would still have a doctor, no matter what.

That was easy to aid, as he told his patients a similar story about his own impending departure - he said he expected Megumi would be traveling as well in order to expand her studies, and they should certainly feel welcome to try the new doctor in town.

The days passed quickly and the preparations for the trip were nearly complete.

"Megumi, we must leave early tomorrow. Will you accompany me this evening to dinner?" Fubuki smiled. "We must celebrate that I have taught you all that I could, and how well you have learned."

"I still have far to go."

"Most of what you have to gain is experience. That is not something I can teach you. Come, don't fret over your old teacher so. Enjoy the evening, for no doubt the trip will be all business."

Megumi smiled and nodded, careful not to let him see the concern in her eyes. No need for Fubukisensei to worry over hurting her. It was simpler for now to enjoy the time with him before they left, as not only her teacher but her friend and colleague. "Hai, Fubu- Tarosensei." She half teased him, though in truth it was not so easy to greet him as an equal. She took the arm he offered and they went to his favorite restaurant.

They left before dawn. Megumi left most of her belongings, trusting that she would return.


	3. Chapter 3

Part III - To Face the Music

They arrived in Tokyo late in the day. Now nineteen, Megumi had been studying with the doctor for two years. She knew him well enough see that he hadn't slept in days; he still seemed torn about something.

"If you'd rather stay at this man's house, I don't mind," Megumi said again.

"It's not that I can't afford it."

"If he's your friend, you should stay with him."

"More of a business partner than a friend," Fubuki said darkly. "No, he's no friend. Actually, I want to dissolve our partnership," he told her.

"Really? But you've known him for so long."

"I'm tired of being under his thumb. The medicine I make for him shouldn't be just for him."

Megumi was surprised by his anger, and let it drop.

She was awed by the house – no, it was a full mansion. The place was huge and lovely, and looked like a wonderful place to have a party.

"Oh, I would love to live in a place like this!" Megumi sighed as they approached.

"No, you wouldn't. Think of all the cleaning!" He was trying to be lighthearted. It sounded forced.

"That's why I'd have maid service," she retorted, determined to keep his mood light. He didn't reply and they entered the building.

A man dressed in black with a white trenchcoat and no expression led them silently inside. The décor of the mansion was heavily influenced by Western culture. Megumi decided she liked it a bit less; it was opulent and ostentatious. Her tastes were simpler and more traditional.

"Shinomorisan," Fubuki greeted the silent man. "This is my colleague, Takani Megumi. I haven't wanted to get her involved. Megumisan, this is Shinomori Aoshi, who is the head of Kanryuusan's guards."

The man nodded curtly by way of greeting. His expression never changed. Megumi looked up at him. And up. He was extremely good-looking, she noted, but so… cold. Distant. She had no sense of him at all, and it chilled her.

"Come in, come in!" The man in front of them struck her as smarmy. She liked him far less than the man she'd just met. If he was smooth ice on the surface of a lake, than this man was the murky scum at the bottom. "Ahh, so this must be the lovely Takani Megumi of whom you speak distressingly little, my good Fubukisan," the man greeted them. "It is truly my pleasure to meet you. I am Takeda Kanryuu. Welcome to my quaint little home."

Formally she returned his greeting, bowing as little as she could and instinctively moving closer toward her mentor.

"Kanryuusan. We have traveled all day. Might we settle in for the night and discuss things in the morning?"

"Yes, yes of course."

"We'll stay in the guest house if that's all right."

"Certainly. Show them the way," he dismissed Aoshi. "When you have settled in, you may return for dinner."

Well, that was one emotion at least. Though Aoshi's expression never changed, he clearly despised the man he guarded. Silently, he led the doctors from the room and into the smaller, Japanese-style guest rooms behind the house.

"Thank you, Shinomorisan," Fubuki said.

"Shinomorisan," Megumi echoed with a nod.

"Don't even think about it," her mentor teased her after the silent man had left. "He's as cold as he looks if not more so. He used to be something else. At fifteen, that man became the leader of those who were to defend Edo Castle had the fighting gone there. His only passion is fighting. I can't really understand why he came so low as to work as a bodyguard." The man shrugged.

Dinner was a quiet and somewhat awkward affair; exhausted as Megumi was, she really wanted nothing more than to go to bed.

She retired to the room before Fubuki did, leaving him talking with Kanryuu. She crawled into her futon and was asleep in minutes.

Some time later, she heard voices as Fubuki returned with Kanryuu, still talking. She pulled the blankets over herself and tried to go back to sleep as the voices came closer. It sounded like they were arguing. She lay as quietly as she could, feigning sleep; it would not do to know what they were fighting about. Still, it sounded very serious.

"Yes, I do mean it. I told you I'd prefer to discuss this in the morning, but my mind is made up."

"NO! I won't let you! You will keep making the drug for me and be happy with what I give you!"

"I'm afraid I can't do that. Now, please be quiet. You'll wake Megumisan." The door slid open and he turned around. "Please get some rest, Kanryuusan. The morning will be plenty of time to disc—" he never finished that sentence. The light in Kanryuu's eyes was truly insane; the sword that had appeared in his hand was dripping with blood. There was no sense in feigning sleep anymore; Megumi looked on in pure terror. Surely she would be next.

"You! You have the formulas. YOU will make the drug!"

Megumi couldn't move. She could hardly breathe. Kanryuu stared at her for a long minute, then without another word, spun and ran back to the house, screaming something she couldn't process.

She was alone with his body.

She had seen death before, but she had never seen a murder executed in cold blood before her eyes. She had seen war, and killings, but never a crime like this, so infantile in its raw selfishness. She could not move.

Fubuki Taro did not, and never would again.

Unknowable time passed. It might have been hours, most likely it was a matter of minutes. Shinomori was there, suddenly, with a very odd man standing behind him. He wore an onmitsu outfit, black with white trim, but his arms were covered in white stripes. And he wore an oni mask.

For the first time, she heard Shinomori speak. "Hannya," he said quietly. "Get rid of that."

"Which," said a dry voice. It sounded slightly distorted, as though there were more than just the mask slurring his speech just the tiniest bit.

"He wants her to make the drug," Aoshi said simply. Hannya nodded and knelt next to Fubuki's body.

He paused a moment, his head bowed. "There was no need for this man to die," he said. "A pointless casualty in a pointless war. He will be buried with respect," the faceless man said. Megumi could only stare, deep in shock, as the striped arms carefully gathered her mentor's body up and the figure seemed to flicker and vanish before her eyes with his burden.

"Can you stand?"

Could she stand? She couldn't even blink. Breathing was a strain, and she was gasping in quick little pants like a wounded animal. As carefully as his subordinate had, Shinomori gathered her in his arms and bore her to the main mansion. He said nothing more, but held her as he might a child, with her head against his chest. Listening to his heartbeat, slow and steady, she began to emerge from her hysterical shock. When she finally moved her head to look up at him, he glanced down.

She was thrown off by the look in his eyes. There was no hint of compassion there. "Fubukisensei…"

"Hannya spoke the truth. A pointless death. It may be that you are better off not knowing any more. You have the formulae?"

"I do," she said vaguely.

"Then you will make the drugs for him."

She trembled violently in his arms. He knew she was nineteen, not so much younger than he himself, but a chord of memory vibrated deep in his mind as he carried her. She needed to be protected, much as a young girl he had left in the care of a trusted friend had. This woman had no one to shield her now. He would not interfere with Kanryuu's will, but he would not keep his own subordinates from doing what they could to make her life less unbearable. Neither would he tell them to do any such thing.

"You will stay tonight in the house. Tomorrow we will send for your things. Sleep, if you can," he said as he deposited her on a bed in a darkened room. He closed the door behind him silently.

"Aoshisama, where are you going to sleep?" Beshimi had followed them back, and had waited outside Aoshi's door as he deposited the shaking girl on the bed.

"I'll take your bed. You're on watch as of now," he said simply. Beshimi smirked.

"She's not going to try anything tonight, that's for sure. I've seen mice less terrified than she is."

"She has reason."

"She reminds me a little of Misaochan," Beshimi said thoughtfully.

"She's a young woman. They all remind you of her."

"Heh. Maybe. But she'll be a handful just the same," Beshimi said prophetically. "Goodnight, Aoshisama," he added to the man's back as he walked down the hall.

Leaning against the wall, he sighed. Guard duty on a terrified girl. They all knew what would happen. Tricked into making the "medicine" for Kanryuu, she would work there for him until she died or was killed. He believed it was half and half either way. He felt for her, they all did, but orders were orders. None of them liked Kanryuu, but the orders came from him, and if Aoshisama believed that somehow the path to his own heart's desire would be found working for Kanryuu, then none of the Oniwabanshuu would question him. All they wanted was for him to be happy again.

When the morning came, Megumi awoke, surprising herself. She hadn't even realized when she'd fallen asleep. The room was sparsely furnished and clearly belonged to a man, though there were no personal effects. He was clearly obsessively neat; nothing was out of place and there was no dust in sight. The evening's events came crashing in on her and she cowered under the covers, her focus narrowing on the need to escape. Perhaps the drugs would help, perhaps her services were necessary, but in a fit of temper this man had killed her mentor and the closest thing she had to a family.

A knock sounded on the door. It was the man in the demon mask who opened it and looked inside. "You are expected at breakfast," he said in that odd, husky voice. "You have half an hour." He closed the door and leaned against the wall, as Beshimi had the night before. Those frightened eyes bothered him, but his loyalty lay with the owner of a pair of ice blue eyes, and orders were orders.

"Well, my darling," Kanryuu crooned as Megumi entered the dining room. "I'm so very glad you've joined us. I'm SO sorry for last night. I'm afraid my temper got the better of me. You see, the medicine that your Fubukisensei has been making for me is a very special medicine." She couldn't shake the feeling that he was talking down to her, though she already hated him. "And he wanted to stop working with me and go into business for himself. I'm afraid I got a little upset. But you, my little songbird, you'll be happy to make the medicine for me, won't you?"

Did it matter? Fubukisensei was dead. Megumi had loved and respected her teacher and wanted to follow in his footsteps, but not into death. She supposed he would agree with her, too. But if this medicine would be helpful to people… She had to help. She said so.

"Excellent!" He rubbed his hands together. "This is the start of something very beautiful, my dear. Something very beautiful indeed. Almost as beautiful as you." He crossed the room to stand before her. Lifting her chin with one finger, he studied her face.

"Please don't touch me," she said in a voice that was barely above a whisper. She swallowed and tried again, and this time it came out more audibly.

"I'm sorry, my dear. It's just that you're so lovely," he sighed. "Come, then. Let's eat breakfast and we'll get you started." He turned toward his own seat.

"Started! But Fubukisensei—"

"Hush, shh, shhh," he made noises as though quieting an animal. "There's no need to worry about him anymore. As you know," he sneered over his shoulder.

"Worry! You killed him! You - you – I would kill you myself!" She leapt for him then, her eyes wild. She hadn't crossed half the space between them before strong hands were on her wrists, holding her back. She struggled for a long moment in the man's grip. "Let me go! He killed Fubukisensei!"

"It seems you're overwrought. Rest for the morning, then, and we'll see how you fare this afternoon." Kanryuu seemed no more perturbed than he had moments ago, though he had undeniably flinched when she had made her move. Hannya led her back to Aoshi's room, sobbing with rage.

He could say nothing to comfort her. "This is Aoshisama's room. You may as well enjoy this while you can. You'll be given somewhere else to sleep soon enough."

"Shinomorisan's room?" She went limp with fear.

"Hush. Aoshisama is not going to hurt you. He has greater concerns than one small girl."

She couldn't read him, but there was an undercurrent to his voice that made her wonder. Perhaps she would be safe with these men on her side. She couldn't expect them to truly be allies, but perhaps at least they'd make her captivity less unbearable. Until she could escape.

She was nineteen. She had her medical skills. She had plenty yet to learn but she had years of tutelage and experience behind her. She would succeed. She had to.


	4. Chapter 4

Part IV: Free Will Versus

Megumi fell exhaustedly into the cot in her closet of a room. Too much more of this and she would lose all touch with reality, lose herself and her entire identity. She had been making the drug for over a year before she'd learned what it was. Shocked and sickened, she had tried once again to rebel, to escape, and been thwarted. The calendar said it was only three years, but in her mind she had lost track of how many decades she had been Kanryuu Takeda's opium whore.

For that was effectively what she was. Constantly he demanded she make him opium; more and more he forced her to share his bed. His touch revolted her, his preferences sickened her, his methods left her bruised and weakened and shamed. Never were there any scars, no permanent physical damage could be inflicted on her, for that would spoil his fun. His women must be perfect beauties, and strong enough to last through his ardent ministrations. He was neither kind, nor gentle, and his love of money was equaled only by his penchant for the pain of others. Her attempted suicides had failed; she was too closely watched.

Only once had she seen anyone from outside when she was not "on display" as Kanryuu's trophy woman. But that chance encounter had been brief. She would never see that man again.

Yet, tomorrow Kanryuu had told her she might take a brief excursion to gather herbs; a brief walk under guard, but at least not the Oniwabanshuu. They would never let her escape. She lay awake far into the night, laying out her plan. She had nothing, there was nowhere to go and no one to whom she could turn. She fell into a dreamless sleep pondering what she could do. 

The next morning started out as any other. Kanryuu gave no sign he had remembered the promise as he told her how much of the drug she must make that day. 

"My dear, I want you to use the new formula today. I have need of enough for many new clients. You will have five hundred packets ready for me by tonight." 

"That's impossible! I will not have it done if I am to go out as you promised, not today and possibly not even tomorrow!" 

"You will have it if you must stay up all night, my dear Megumi." Kanryuu's smile was a mockery of sympathy. "And I suppose we shall have to postpone your little excursion, hmmm?" He snickered and Megumi knew she had no choice. She glared at him defiantly. 

"I won't use the new formula." 

A figure flickered into existence next to her, his demonic face as unmoving as ever. Hannya turned his mask towards her, and the cruel visage seemed to grow even crueler.

"You will do as you are told." 

He stood silently over her, even hours later as she began packaging the opium. 

She was beginning to resent his hovering presence. "You are not so cruel as he is! You have honor! Why do you work for such as he?" Megumi had never asked the question before, though she had often broached the subject in a more roundabout fashion. He had never answered her directly. 

This time, however, Hannya had a ready answer. "It is my own leader I follow. Aoshisama is the only man from whom I take orders. It is not my place to judge his path. I only act on what Aoshisama himself says." 

"But why -" 

"I cannot answer for him. No more talk. I am Oniwabanshuu, and Aoshisama is my leader." It was a refrain she'd heard all too often over the last two years. 

Megumi worked in silence, barely noticing when Hannya placed a tray of food he must have gotten from one of Kanryuu's regular guard next to her. She shook her head when he indicated she was to eat. 

"You will eat. There is no point in starving yourself. Either you will escape, or be broken, but destroying yourself will only make either one more difficult." Certainly that was not a trace of amusement in his voice. 

Slowly it dawned on Megumi that this distant man, hidden behind masks both figurative and literal, was not completely heartless. She was still a person to him, even if not to his boss' employer. She paused in the tedious wrapping of the deadly little packets. Perhaps there was a chance. And if there was... 

"I suppose I must eat, then. If I am to survive, I must keep up my own strength." Nothing in her behavior indicated the ray of hope dawning within. She smiled wistfully, tired and haggard but still beautiful. "I don't suppose you might help me with these?" She gestured to the unwrapped drug and the little papers she used to make the innocent looking triangles. 

"You would suppose wrongly if you did." 

So much for that idea. Megumi ate the mediocre fare quickly and resumed wrapping.

Some time later, Hannya reappeared beside Aoshi. "She is sleeping. She has strength beyond what he surmises. He cannot hold her forever." The halting speech was not like him, but Aoshi had more impersonal matters on his mind. 

"It wouldn't do to have her die by his hand, Hannya. Irespect her strength, such as it is, but he is the one giving orders. I must believe that he will provide the opportunity we've sought for so long." 

"Yes, Aoshisama." 

By late afternoon she took the deadly load to Kanryuu's office. 

"Ah, my dear. How nice of you to drop in" He smiled coldly. 

Megumi repressed a shudder. "I have done as you asked. Now I ask that you fulfill your promise to me. Let me gather my herbs." 

Kanryuu sighed. "Very well. Be ready in five minutes." He flicked a hand at her in a dismissive gesture. "Aoshi!" 

The quiet man in a white trench coat was never far away. "Yes?" 

"Find someone to escort Megumisan into town. And don't let her out of sight for an instant." 

Aoshi nodded, glaring at the hateful creature who paid well but provided a more important possibility. Takeda Kanryuu made no secret of how poorly he regarded the honor of the Oniwabanshuu. If that was the way this man chose to think, then it would serve him right. Soon, he would get what he deserved. Aoshi would have smiled. Let the source of Kanryuu's downfall be his own blind refusal to see that true loyalty was not won with money. The lesson would be learned sooner or later; Aoshi just hoped he might be the one to teach it. 

Megumi was opening the door just as one of Kanryuu's Yakuza flunkies arrived to bring her out. "Come, then. Let's make this quick, ne?" He was impatient and obviously thought his time was better spent doing just about anything other than playing nursemaid. If only... 

They were met at the door by another man, who led the way into Tokyo, taking up a position close behind Megumi once they were in sight of the market. She wasn't aware of Beshimi following them, though her guards knew he was there. 

Only two guards. He had sent her out with only two guards - and she saw none of the onmitsu. She couldn't pass up this chance.

They traveled into the heart of the crowds as Megumi sought out first common, then increasingly rare and bizarre leaves and roots for her medicines. Some were ordinary spices, others could only be found at certain herbalists and then not often. 

Swords had been outlawed now in Meiji era Japan; it was a time of peace. Only certain people might carry a blade through many carried bokken or shinai. Physical fitness was not outlawed, and often lessons with a wooden blade improved strength and coordination. There were other weapons than swords as well. Beshimi, for example, preferred his own poisoned spiral darts. 

Megumi's escort, however, was armed, but not entirely alert. She had just made another purchase, and had taken so long that they had wandered off a little way. She seized the moment when a large group passed, hiding among their number briefly. 

She slipped away into the crowds. She must run, hard and fast. The most expensive and rare things she had purchased she carried herself inside her kimono sleeves; no sense losing them to chance. Everything else was relatively expendable. It hadn't been her money. After slipping though another knot of people, Megumi looked around and chose a direction blindly. 

Moments later, Megumi ran, long black hair streaming out behind her. There must be somewhere she could hide. Strange, how so few people seemed to notice a woman running for her life in their midst. Minutes seemed to be hours. Her every breath began to sear. She had seen her captors; they were catching up. 

They had her flanked. But there was a restaurant only a few steps away. She ran for it but they were so close behind her. Despairing, she flung open the door. 

The room was not empty. Several men were rolling dice, and they looked up in surprise. 

Someone asked a question, but it didn't register. Short of breath, she looked around in desperation.

Most of them were so nondescript as to be nearly invisible. One looked promising. He was obviously strong and quite tall, but he didn't look all that trustworthy. He looked annoyed, if anything. 

There was a sword next to him, resting lightly on the shoulder of the man seated next to him. 

She barely noticed his long red hair and the cross-shaped scar on his cheek. She barely registered much beyond the presence of the sword next to him. And even if she had, surely he was no fighter; his skills could not possibly surpass the Oniwa Banshu if he could even use the sword. Yet she had no choice.

That red hair. It struck a chord of familiarity in her. She'd seen hair like that once, but the scar on his face… It wasn't possible. A distant echo in her mind, her own voice came back to her. ~_I'll sooner love the Hitokiri Battousai than even think about Mujihi Nobuo again!_~ This man could not possibly be the former Hitokiri Battousai. It didn't matter who he was, as long as he could handle that sword. She flung herself at him, burying her head in his other shoulder as she wrapped him in her arms. 

"Please help me!"


End file.
